The present invention relates to pickup truck bed covers and, more particularly, to such a cover which is convertible between a camper type shell and a hard tonneau type cover.
The beds of pickup trucks enable a wide variety of items to be hauled by such trucks. One problem with pickup beds is their open nature which makes items carried vulnerable to weather damage, theft, or loss by falling or being blown out of the bed. Earlier soft tonneau covers snapped onto snap fasteners mounted on top of the side walls, a front end wall, and the tailgate and provided a cover for the bed which could be opened as needed to place articles into the bed or take them out. More recently, so-called hard tonneau covers have been developed which incorporate mechanisms that allow the cover to tilt up about the front end to provide access to the bed. Some hard tonneau covers are powered by electrical motors, hydraulic cylinders, or pneumatic cylinders to lift and lower the rear end of the cover.
In addition to tonneau covers, various types of shells have been provided for pickup truck beds. Full sized pickup bed camper units are often taller than the pickup cab and wider and longer than the pickup bed and are enclosed by walls on all sides. In contrast, shells, or camper shells, usually are formed of side walls, a front end wall, and a rear hatch, all with windows, and a roof. The rear hatch can be pivoted open or locked closed. Usually, shells have about the same height as the cab and about the same width and length as the pickup bed. Shells allow a person to climb completely into the covered bed and are sometimes used as sleeping quarters when camping. Mechanisms have been developed to tilt shells up about the front end in a manner similar to hard tonneau covers.
In order to combine the advantages of tonneau covers and shells, arrangements have been developed which provide for conversion between a tonneau configuration and a shell configuration. Such an arrangement is disclosed in U.S. Pub. No. 2004/0061351 A1.